In short, you can start your SC2 client and pre-download a big chunk of the WoL to HotS patching in advance. Supposedly 6 GB.

Quite important if you download very slowly or have low monthly bandwidth caps.

Even if you don't give a damn about HotS, WoL is still affected (layout changes, some HotS Features for WoL too, etc.) and it will be a required patch even for WoL-only owners on March 12. From what I understand, regardless if you own just WoL or you own WoL + HotS, you will essentially have HotS data except it is locked until you buy HotS.

IskatuMesk wrote:I imagine you can just use all the shit inside the mpq regardless. The "lock" likely has to do with how battle.net handles dependencies.

Pretty much sure it is that way.

For example, I downloaded the HotS beta (legally regardless if you are "in" or not) but due to only having the WoL "license", it only allowed me to use WoL dependencies but no HotS ones for the editor itself (not the game). Which I expect to the be behavior for WoL-only as far the game and editor will work when HotS will be officially released.

Pr0nogo wrote:Forced downlolding?

Seems like you're inviting crackers if you hand people the data but 'lock' it.

Let's be honest : You can already download the HotS beta then use a decent MPQ editor to get the data out. I presume it will be the same for the official HotS.

Pretty much common knowledge for anyone with the slightest Blizzard modding knowledge. At this point, it's not like it will make much of a difference "cracking"-wise in that specific aspect.

It's probably more of a bonus that if you already got HotS data then you can just buy HotS from Blizzard and you are already in without downloading since you already got HotS data.

EDIT : The only note is that since it is technically against the ToS to use HotS assets in WoL-only maps, you are still subject to get your map taken down by Blizzard.

Generally, companies care more about 'protecting' their IP as time goes on. I assumed Blizzard would put effort into DRM-related items like every other corporation. I suppose they're tony at that, too.

Warden functions about as well as DRM as not having DRM at all. To quote a chinese gold farmer, "only idiots get caught by warden".

And since campaigns aren't played over battle.net... well, there's the possibility it's always active on the client anyways. But how will it tell what individual files in your depedency are the same as the hots ones?

IskatuMesk wrote:But how will it tell what individual files in your depedency are the same as the hots ones?

*IF* they have such protection, it would probably be by some file size and/or checksum check mechanism. It implies all clients got some secret list of all files with file sizes and checksums.

Note that it won't protect from modified HotS assets but at that point, it's probably insanely difficult (and not worth it) to 100% prevent HotS assets. At that point, the legal notes against popular WoL campaigns doing it would be more effective.

IskatuMesk wrote:HoTS performance is nearly unplayable right now. It gives both HKS and I this uncontrollable stuttering/freezing.

Unplayable? Damn. So they actually screwed the beta this badly performance-wise? Any specific case that it does that sluttering/freezing (ex : specific units, specific races, specific melee maps, etc.)?

Personally, I can't test since at one time I was auto-flagged (like 1 week ago, maybe by mistake) to play in beta but then it was removed. If I try to log in with SC-I or SC-II, it just say that "Your account has no game accounts that can be used in that region. blahblah"

So my beta client is essentially useless. Still can post on the beta forums although.

EDIT : Hopefully it will be fixed or tolerable on patch 2.0.4 of WoL. I would like you guys to give me news about it if the FPS just go down the drain at 2.0.4 on your end.